1 Chronicles 4

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Descendants of Judah

1 1The sons of Judah: 2Perez, Hezron, 3Carmi, Hur, and Shobal.
2 4Reaiah the son of Shobal fathered Jahath, and Jahath fathered Ahumai and Lahad. These were the clans of the 5Zorathites.
3 These were the sons[a] of Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister was Hazzelelponi,
4 and 6Penuel fathered 7Gedor, and Ezer fathered Hushah. These were the sons of Hur, the firstborn of 8Ephrathah, the father of Bethlehem.
5 9Ashhur, the father of Tekoa, had two wives, Helah and Naarah;
6 Naarah bore him Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari. These were the sons of Naarah.
7 The sons of Helah: Zereth, Izhar, and Ethnan.
8 Koz fathered Anub, Zobebah, and the clans of Aharhel, the son of Harum.
9 Jabez was 10more honorable than his brothers; and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, "Because I bore him in pain."[b]
10 Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, "Oh that you would bless me and enlarge my border, and that your hand might be with me, and that you would keep me from harm[c] so that it might not bring me pain!" And God granted what he asked.
11 Chelub, the brother of Shuhah, fathered Mehir, who fathered Eshton.
12 Eshton fathered Beth-rapha, Paseah, and Tehinnah, the father of Ir-nahash. These are the men of Recah.
13 The sons of 11Kenaz: 12Othniel and Seraiah; and the sons of Othniel: Hathath and Meonothai.[d]
14 Meonothai fathered Ophrah; and Seraiah fathered Joab, the father of Ge-harashim,[e] so-called because they were craftsmen.
15 The sons of 13Caleb the son of Jephunneh: Iru, Elah, and Naam; and the son[f] of Elah: Kenaz.
16 The sons of Jehallelel: Ziph, Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel.
17 The sons of Ezrah: Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. These are the sons of Bithiah, the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered married;[g] and she conceived and bore[h] Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah, the father of Eshtemoa.
18 And his Judahite wife bore 14Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.
19 The sons of the wife of Hodiah, the sister of Naham, were the fathers of Keilah the Garmite and Eshtemoa the Maacathite.
20 The sons of Shimon: Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-hanan, and Tilon. The sons of Ishi: Zoheth and Ben-zoheth.
21 The sons of 15Shelah the son of Judah: Er the father of Lecah, Laadah the father of Mareshah, and the clans of the house of linen workers at Beth-ashbea;
22 and Jokim, and the men of Cozeba, and Joash, and Saraph, who ruled in Moab and returned to Lehem[i] (now the records[j] are ancient).
23 These were the potters who were inhabitants of Netaim and Gederah. They lived there in the king's service.

Descendants of Simeon

24 16The sons of Simeon: Nemuel, Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, Shaul;
25 Shallum was his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son.
26 The sons of Mishma: Hammuel his son, Zaccur his son, Shimei his son.
27 Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters; but his brothers did not have many children, 17nor did all their clan multiply 18like the men of Judah.
28 19They lived in Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar-shual,
29 20Bilhah, Ezem, 21Tolad,
30 22Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag,
31 Beth-marcaboth, 23Hazar-susim, 24Beth-biri, and 25Shaaraim. These were their cities until David reigned.
32 And their villages were Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan, five cities,
33 along with all their villages that were around these cities as far as 26Baal. These were their settlements, and they kept a genealogical record.
34 Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah the son of Amaziah,
35 Joel, Jehu the son of Joshibiah, son of Seraiah, son of Asiel,
36 Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah,
37 Ziza the son of Shiphi, son of Allon, son of Jedaiah, son of Shimri, son of Shemaiah--
38 these mentioned by name were princes in their clans, 27and their fathers' houses increased greatly.
39 They journeyed to the entrance of 28Gedor, to the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks,
40 where they found rich, good pasture, and the land was very broad, 29quiet, and peaceful, for the former inhabitants there belonged to Ham.
41 30These, registered by name, came in the days of Hezekiah, king of Judah, and destroyed their tents and the Meunites who were found there, and marked them for destruction to this day, 31and settled in their place, because there was pasture there for their flocks.
42 And some of them, five hundred men of the Simeonites, went to 32Mount Seir, having as their leaders Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi.
43 And they defeated 33the remnant of the Amalekites who had escaped, and they have lived there to this day.

1 Chronicles 4 Commentary

Chapter 4

Genealogies.

- In this chapter we have a further account of Judah, the most numerous and most famous of all the tribes; also an account of Simeon. The most remarkable person in this chapter is Jabez. We are not told upon what account Jabez was more honourable than his brethren; but we find that he was a praying man. The way to be truly great, is to seek to do God's will, and to pray earnestly. Here is the prayer he made. Jabez prayed to the living and true God, who alone can hear and answer prayer; and, in prayer he regarded him as a God in covenant with his people. He does not express his promise, but leaves it to be understood; he was afraid to promise in his own strength, and resolved to devote himself entirely to God. Lord, if thou wilt bless me and keep me, do what thou wilt with me; I will be at thy command and disposal for ever. As the text reads it, this was the language of a most ardent and affectionate desire, Oh that thou wouldest bless me! Four things Jabez prayed for. 1. That God would bless him indeed. Spiritual blessings are the best blessings: God's blessings are real things, and produce real effects. 2. That He would enlarge his coast. That God would enlarge our hearts, and so enlarge our portion in himself, and in the heavenly Canaan, ought to be our desire and prayer. 3. That God's hand might be with him. God's hand with us, to lead us, protect us, strengthen us, and to work all our works in us and for us, is a hand all-sufficient for us. 4. That he would keep him from evil, the evil of sin, the evil of trouble, all the evil designs of his enemies, that they might not hurt, nor make him a Jabez indeed, a man of sorrow. God granted that which he requested. God is ever ready to hear prayer: his ear is not now heavy.

Cross References 33

Footnotes 10

  • [a]. Septuagint (compare Vulgate); Hebrew father
  • [b]. Jabez sounds like the Hebrew for pain
  • [c]. Or evil
  • [d]. Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew lacks Meonothai
  • [e]. Ge-harashim means valley of craftsmen
  • [f]. Hebrew sons
  • [g]. The clause These are... married is transposed from verse 18
  • [h]. Hebrew lacks and bore
  • [i]. Vulgate (compare Septuagint); Hebrew and Jashubi-lahem
  • [j]. Or matters

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CHRONICLES 4

In this chapter is a further account of the tribe of Judah, and of some principal families in it, 1Ch 4:1-23 and of the tribe of Simeon, their families, cities, and villages, 1Ch 4:24-38 and of the enlargement of their borders, and conquest of the Amalekites, 1Ch 4:39-43.

1 Chronicles 4 Commentaries

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.